Domino is a set of square cardboard tiles that are used to play games of chance or skill. Each domino has a unique number of dots on each of its four ends. A domino can be matched with another domino only if it has the same number of matching dots on its two ends. If a tile does not have any matching dots on its two ends, it is known as a blank and can be played at random in some games. There are several different games that can be played with a domino set, and each has its own rules.

Dominoes are typically laid out on a table, and players take turns placing a domino. Each time a domino is placed, the rest of the tiles in that row or column must be matched to it. If a player can’t match a domino, they draw from the boneyard (or chickenyard) until they have enough pieces to continue playing. Depending on the game, the players may score points by scoring lines of open-ended dominoes that add up to a specific total or by blocking rounds.

The most common domino sets available today contain 28 tiles. These are called double six and double nine sets, and they are often used to play the most popular types of domino games. Larger domino sets also exist, and they are used primarily for more complex domino games involving multiple players or players looking to extend the length of a domino chain.

In a typical game of domino, a tile with a matching number of dots on its two ends must be played to the end of a line of adjacent tiles that form a train. The trains must be connected in a “single chickenfoot” arrangement, and they can’t carry on until one or more of the train’s doubles are completed. A train cannot be made until all of its doubles are complete, and the game is over when a player can’t lay a new domino to an open end of the single chickenfoot.

The idiom domino effect describes any situation in which a small trigger can lead to a series of events that grow larger and more significant as the chain continues. The term was first cited by journalist Alsop in a 1964 newspaper article about Eisenhower’s policy toward communist Vietnam, but it became widely used afterward to refer to any cascade that occurs from a single small starting point.

Artist Lily Hevesh started collecting dominoes when she was 9 years old and soon began creating impressive displays with them. She now has a YouTube channel where she posts videos of her work and has created spectacular domino setups for movies, TV shows, and events. She is so well-known for her domino art that she is sometimes asked to create bespoke designs for celebrities. In fact, Hevesh’s setups have been seen by more than 2 million people on YouTube.